Warm, moist air flowed northward from the Gulf of Mexico across the Central United States and reached as far north as Missouri. [19][126] A smaller area of low pressure forming along the dry line near the Lawton, Oklahoma, area produced conditions locally supportive of tornadogenesis. The SPC initially projected a Moderate Risk of severe weather over the central Great Plains before raising a High Risk for severe weather on May8 centered on the Kansas City area. Debris from many of the homes and outbuildings was located over one half mile to a mile away. Temperatures north of the warm front remained in the low to mid 60s. Significant flooding occurred. [9] The first severe watch on May3 was a severe thunderstorm watch issued for parts of the Gulf Coast at 14:14UTC (9:14a.m. CDT) in connection with a mesoscale convective system that had been tracking southeast over eastern Mississippi and western Alabama during the morning. [26] A cold front and dry line were located south and southwest of the low-pressure area while a warm front spanned from the system southeast to the Tennessee Valley. [143][144], By around 17UTC (1p.m. EDT), some of the storms had congealed into a mesoscale convective system and were beginning to take a more southward trajectory into West Virginia and Virginia. These factors were forecast to provide a conducive environment for severe weather across much of the U.S.; the SPC would delineate moderate risks[note 2] for severe weather in parts of the central Great Plains, Red River region, and southeastern U.S. over the course of the day, with a lesser but nonetheless extant expectation of severe weather extending outwards from the focal areas. Til this point, the tornado width was about 250 yards wide but increased to about one quarter mile wide about three miles west southwest of the community of Ringo. Four people were killed along this tornado track. A very moist and unstable airmass was located south of the front. StormReady This is probably equal in size to Quinter #1 as being the largest tornadoes we have scene. CDT). in Jackson is now a large pile of splintered wood after Tuesday's, May 6, 2003, tornado. Within Moore city-limits, the peak damage caused near the center of the tornado was mostly rated as F2, although a few isolated locations received F3-rated damage; F3 damage in Moore was observed near 12th Street where several businesses, two hotels, an office building, a church, several restaurants, a child center and a Headstart Program building were either severely damaged or destroyed. [99][100] In the early afternoon, cumulus clouds began to build in the vicinity of San Angelo and Junction City in Texas as temperatures warmed above 90F (32C). [29] The warm front moved north as the day progressed, bringing along with it the warm and moist maritime tropical air mass. Perhaps the most significant damage was to a wood frame home along Highway 5 approximately five miles southeast of Camdenton. According to records, the largest tornado in the Stockton area was an F3 in 1982 that caused 1 injuries and 0 deaths. Tornado Path - Girard Ks. Tornado Destroys Stockton, Mo., Downtown JIM SUHR May 5, 2003 Comments Associated Press Writer After the Civil War left this southwest Missouri town in tatters, residents rebuilt the town. [138][139] Widespread thunderstormssome with mesocyclonesformed over parts of eastern Missouri, Illinois, southwestern Indiana, and western Kentucky during the afternoon in response to the influx of warm and moist air;[140] four tornadoes occurred in these states during the day. A total of 50deaths and 713injuries were caused by the severe weather, with a majority caused by tornadoes; the deadliest tornado was an F4that struck Madison and Henderson counties in Tennessee, killing 11. "[311] Emergency shelters were opened in Madison County, Tennessee as the county largely lost access to electricity and water following a May4 tornado. [211] While the storms that produced the two tornadoes exhibited strong rotation, most storms on May11 did not produce any substantial severe weather. on May 4, 2003, National Park Service says never push a slower friend down when escaping a bear, Springfield police ask for help to identify suspects after SUV hit a gas pump, Insect found outside Arkansas Walmart identified as Jurassic-era insect. [293] Similar effects were felt in Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin as a result of the frontal passage;[19] in Indiana, 12,000households were without power during the strongest winds. [254] Minor damage was inflicted to the roofs of hundreds of homes. NOAA Weather Radio Now, the initial shock for some in the town formerly known as Lancaster and Fremont before going with Stockton in 1859 in honor of a military man has turned to resolve. [19] Several roads were closed due to vehicle accidents or obstructing debris. Keeping a few but the rest of them need to find a new home. "Just to look out this way and see nothing there. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. [230] Three people died in Stockton: one man died after being struck by flying debris after his frame house was destroyed, one man died after being struck by flying debris after leaving his home during the tornado's approach, and one man died after refusing to seek shelter in his basement. [106][107] A more conditional risk for severe weather was predicted along a dry line over the southern Great Plains due to the presence of a capping inversion that was forecast to limit the coverage of storms. As severe weather shifted east across the country, another trough would cross from the Pacific to the Central United States and reignite activity. [13] Concurrently, decreasing air pressures, steepening lapse rates, and increasing moisture resulted in another conducive area for severe weather over the central Great Plains and along the eastern periphery of the Rocky Mountains. As fate would have it, the tornado track went between several populated areas sparing them from the destructive damage that befell Ringo and Franklin. Forecast Discussion In addition to damage to infrastructure, one person was killed by a fallen tree in Arvonia. Damage caused by the severe weather and associated flooding amounted to US$4.1billion (US$5.8billion in 2016), making it the costliest U.S. tornado outbreak of the 2000s. [129] The air mass to the east of the dry line was also becoming exceptionally unstable;[157] by 23:05UTC (6:05p.m. CDT), three tornado watches were in effect along a band from North Texas and central Indiana. 2003-9-23 - F1 Tornado: 4.2 mi. Some said the twister had gone through the town like a giant lawn mower, sheering giant oaks as if they were blades of grass and piling the wreckage of homes and businesses in heaps. Table The following information will provide a brief synopsis of these ingredients that produced the outbreak of destructive and deadly tornadoes. [47][45], Three F0tornadoes were reported in northern Mississippi between 12:5513:55UTC (7:558:55a.m. [208] The SPC issued a tornado watch an hour later for this destabilizing region. But by Tuesday, Stockton was declaring small victories. Seven of the eight fatal tornadoes occurred within a high-risk outlook area, with the eighth just outside in a moderate-risk area. [127] The first storms developing in this region initially failed to intensify as a result of the strong capping inversion overhead. 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[20] The strongest tornado of the day was an F2tornado that touched down near Lake Stamford in Texas at around 00:10UTC (7:00p.m. CDT). [297] At Grand Lake, several boat docks were damaged and between 150 and 200trees were blown down by winds estimated at 80mph (130km/h), resulting in $100,000in damage. [3], This atmospheric setup was highly conducive for tornadogenesis, and accordingly the potential for a major tornado outbreak was forecast well in advance. [217], The first tornado in the Kansas City area touched down in Leavenworth County, Kansas and was first noted by Fort Leavenworth officials at around 3:45p.m.CDT. [19] There were two other F3tornadoes in central Tennessee, with one tracking across both Hickman and Williamson counties and the other striking parts of Rutherford County. [50] Eight confirmed tornadoes touched down in Tennessee between 1422UTC (9a.m. [213] At the height of the storms, the Kansas City Power and Light Company reported that 33,000of its electricity customers were without power, including Providence Medical Center where 22persons were treated for injuries. [19], Closer to the main risk region, scattered thunderstorms began to form and strengthen over northwestern Texas by around 14UTC (9a.m. CDT) in response to the advection of warm air. Weather Disasters Summary, Tornado Outbreak Day Sequences: Historic Events and Climatology (18752003), Memphis National Weather Service Perspective of the Severe Weather Outbreak of May 2003 Focus on the F4 Madison County, Tennessee Tornado, OK-FIRST Case Study: The Tornado Outbreaks of May 2003, NOAA: Cold Front Spawns Super-Cell Storms, Deadly Tornadoes in Central Plains States, Studies of the May 2003 tornado outbreaks, National Weather Service storm survey results for April 30, 2003, Tornadoes Rip Across Southeast Kansas and the Missouri Ozarks May 4th 2003, Summary of the May 45, 2003 Middle Tennessee Tornadoes, Cold Front Spawns Supercell Storms, Deadly Tornadoes in Central Plains States, Kansas City, KS May 4, 2003 "The 5-4-3 Tornado Outbreak", Storm Survey Results for the May 10, 2003 Event, Summary of the May 11, 2003 Middle Tennessee Tornadoes, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tornado_outbreak_sequence_of_May_2003&oldid=1136143347, 2003 natural disasters in the United States, Pages containing links to subscription-only content, Short description with empty Wikidata description, Pages using infobox storm with notes parameter, Articles with unsourced statements from March 2021, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, 42deaths (+9non-tornadic deaths), 652injuries (+52non-tornadic injuries), This page was last edited on 28 January 2023, at 23:21.